Clarksville, TN – Despite facing eight match points and being down 4-1 in the third set, senior Thiago Nogueira came back to secure the first ASUN Conference victory in Austin Peay State University (APSU) men’s tennis history, as the Governors defeated Lipscomb 4-3, Saturday, at the Governors Tennis Courts.
The five-hour, 22-minute match was the longest in program history, while Austin Peay State University’s (4-9, 1-2 ASUN) win against Lipscomb (4-10, 1-2 ASUN) is its first since February 2014.
Despite dropping the first doubles match from the No. 1 position, APSU rallied to pick up wins from the No. 2 and No. 3 positions and claim the match’s first point. Sota Minami and Javier Tortajada defeated Lipscomb’s Carlos Salas Tulla and Jake Penny, 6-3, from the No. 2 court, while Bodi van Galen and Aeneas Schaub won 6-4 from the No. 3 position.
The win was the third of the season for Minami and Tortajada and first in as many attempts for van Galen and Schaub.
Giovanni Becchis and Tom Bolton extended APSU’s lead to 3-0 following wins from the No. 2 and No. 3 singles positions, respectively. Becchis’ match was the first to go final, as the Boves, Italy native won a pair of 6-2 sets for his fifth singles win of the season. Bolton’s win was his seventh of the spring, as he came back after dropping his first set to win 6-4, 6-2 in the final two frames.
Despite facing a 3-0 deficit, Lipscomb came back to win three-straight matches, including a pair of three-set wins from the No. 4 and No. 1 courts. The Bisons evened the match at three following a 7-6 (7-2), 6-3 win against van Galen in No. 5 singles.
As the final match still in action, Nogueira won his first set against Lipscomb’s Luka Stojanovic, 6-3. Stojanovic then erased a 4-1, second-set advantage by Nogueira and won it, 6-4. Nogueira then battled back in the third set which featured eight match points to force the tiebreaker, which he also came back to win, 7-4.
Next Up For APSU Men’s Tennis
The Austin Peay State University men’s tennis prepares for a quick turnaround, as it faces long-time rival Eastern Kentucky in a Sunday 10:00am match at the Governors Tennis Courts.
Results vs. Lipscomb
Doubles
1. Maksim Bogdanovich / Luka Stojanovic def. Tom Bolton / Giovanni Becchis, 6-2
2. Sota Minami / Javier Tortajada def. Carlos Salas Tulla / Jake Penny, 6-3
3. Bodi van Galen / Aeneas Schaub def. Henrique Ushizima / Vikash Singh, 6-4
Singles
1. Maksim Bogdanovich def. Sota Minami , 7-5, 3-6, 6-3
2. Giovanni Becchis def. Henrique ushizima, 6-2, 6-2
3. Tom Bolton def. Jake Penny, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2
4. Vikash Singh def. Javier Tortajada, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3
5. Carlos Salas Tulla def. Bodi van Galen, 7-6 (7-2), 6-3
6. Thiago Nogueira def. Luka Stojanovic, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (7-3)
